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Boswellic acids and their anti-inflammatory impact to the rescue!

The great health restoring benefits of BoswelliaSerrata on various ailments has been the subject of much recent research. In the ancient world, the aromatic fragrance of burning the Boswellia resin was part of many religious ceremonies. Today, the resin from the trunk of the boswellia tree is studied in relation to its powerful anti-inflammatory substancesas beneficial in therapies against diseases like asthma, rheumatoid arthritis or atopic dermatitis.This Boswellia resin has also been used for thousands of years in the Ayurvedic medicine for various purposes. In one research study, researchers were able to show exactly how boswellic acids – responsible for the impact of the ingredients of the Boswellia resin – actually interfere in the inflammation process. Boswellic acids interact with several different proteins that are part of inflammatory reactions, but most of all with an enzyme which is responsible for the synthesis of prostaglandin E2. Prostaglandin E2 is one of the mediators of the immune response and plays a decisive role in the process of inflammation, in the development of fever and of pain. Boswellic acids block this enzyme efficiently and thereby reduce the inflammatory reaction, leading the way to targeted use in the therapies relating to ailments which have their root cause in inflammatory diseases. Another benefit is that boswellic acids have less side effects than today’s prevalent anti-inflammatory treatments like diclofenac or indomethacin whose impact is less specific, and can increase the risk of stomach ulcers and negatively affect renal function. There are more than ten Boswellia species in the world. The most well-known and widely-used one is Boswelliaserrata from Northern and central India. Another potent species is the resin of the Boswelliapapyrifera which mostly occurs in the Northeast of Africa (Ethiopia, Somalia) and on the Arabian Peninsula (Yemen, Oman). Since boswellic acids occur exclusively in the resin of Boswellia trees, they are very difficult to produce synthetically. Therefore these trees are the only source of these promising active ingredients.